Chinese Food

This is the end result (the 37 others were out of view or already eaten) of Chinese Chili Pork Wontons.  They were amazingly delicious on my 1st attempt!  But, channeling Paul Harvey now, here is, the rest of the story...

Pam and I love good Chinese food.  The problem is, not many places are good.  We were spoiled to great Chinese food in OKC by 'Mike', which owned and operated a little hole in the wall Chinese restaurant at I-240 & Penn for almost 40 years.  Pam and I first ate at his restaurant in '91, and did so with great regularity until '97 when we moved to Tulsa.  And then, at least 3x a year until 2011 when Mike retired, we would travel to OKC to eat at his restaurant.

We finally found a restaurant in Tulsa that is good.  It is Chop Sticks at 61st & Sheridan, and they willingly cook to order our meals without MSG.  One of my favorite items on their menu is an appetizer.  Chili Pork Wontons.  They are incredible.

After my 4th purchase of these morsels of explosionary flavored tenderness; I realized that there was no way that I could not make these myself.  There is just nothing to them, and besides that, the cost of $1 a piece was always quite high.  They are one bite, five chews, and swallow.  Well, there goes a buck.  I told myself that I could eat 30 of these gut bombs, but would never pay $30 for them.

Having procured a recipe that sounded almost exactly like the ones that I enjoyed eating, I ventured into the land of Nam Hai.

My big bad Ford 250 lumbers into the parking lot of Nam Hai in the little China area of Tulsa; and as I survey the area for a spot worthy enough to park, my first thought is, 'wow, even these parking spaces are smaller'.  Not being able to find an end to my pleasure, I do what I do, and take up two.

Opening the door of my truck, and stepping onto the running board, I immediately see evidence that this grocery store is not going to be 'normal'.  Normal as in; the only window placards shouting at me to come in are written in Chinese, and they are over-layered onto the glass so thick that you can't really tell which decade they came from.  Imagine, at one time in this life, you could actually see glass.  Now all that could be seen were 100's of old layer upon layer of 'specials' and 'sales', all written in Chinese.

Further evidence to support my initial impression is solidified as I amble my girth towards the entrance.  To me, the customers walking in with me looked like midgets getting out of midget cars.  The parking lot was filled with versions of the Ford Fetus (see an earlier blog by that name) that my truck could have squashed with one tire.  These 'humanoid' creatures ranged in height from 3'10" to 4'8", and none of the ones walking into the store with me could have exceeded 85 lbs.  My right leg probably weighs close to 85 lbs!

I hadn't even made it to the grocery door, and three fellow customers had eyed me down like "I" was the foreign creature; that or some kind of a giant.  That day I just happened to be wearing my cowboy boots which make me stand at 6' 2".  Together with the heft of my 222 lb. body, and a really good looking white cowboy hat and black wrap around sunglasses, I'm sure that to them it was I that truly did look out of place.  It was my normal look.  Imagine what they might have thought had I chose to be wearing my 9mm Ruger on my hip that day, instead of carrying one in my pocket.

One of the little female minions burst through the door ahead of me; and all I was trying to do was to be courteous and open the door for her...

One step through the front door, and I was immediately transported to China (or at least what a typical grocery store in China must look like).  My senses shifted into hyper-drive as I was visibly stunned by the sights of this store.  Cram packed shelves from floor to ceiling, 2' wide aisles, cash registers from 1957, with Mom at one, and Dad at the other.  And the smell.  Oh my land, the smell, it was overpowering; in a nauseating way. 

Fresh seafood, flown in weekly from all across the world.  Seafood that previously I only thought existed in New York City or San Francisco; but yet, here it was, right here in Tulsa.  Amazingly, the seafood counter had customers lined up several deep.  Fish with names that were written in English, but that I had never heard of.  To go along with fresh mussels, live blue crab by the 1,000's, live lobsters, and Octopi in heaps that were many feet high.  Plus, local catfish, local bass, local perch, and local Koi (carp).

I was more enamored by the 'meat' section though.

I had my camera turned the wrong way for this one.  Far left of the picture is pig tail.  The middle of the picture is pig stomach, and the right of the picture is pig ear.

I have not run across a recipe calling for any of these culinary delights; but if I do, I think I'll pass.  My palette is not nearly as discriminating as it once was; but those three items just do not sound like something that I would ever want to eat.

I know I'm eating all those parts, and many more, when I consume pork hot dogs in mass quantities, but ground up with 100's of other parts somehow tastes great.  It's the individuality that doesn't appeal to me.

 



I've heard of duck head soup, but I have never had any.  But, I've never heard of a dish with duck feet.  Here though are ample supplies of each in case you have that on your menu for this weekend.

Once again, I had my camera turned the wrong way.  To the far right is pork kidney.  The middle image is pork heart, and the image on the far left is pork uterus.

It boggles my mind trying to imagine a meal prepared with pork uterus.  Why uterus?  And even pork heart?  I've never seen that in a cookbook either.  This must be the reason that Chinese buffets are "Americanized".  I wonder how busy they would be with a festoon of sautéed uterus, a plate of fried heart, and skewers of alternating pig ears and pig kidneys.

I just don't think that would go over too well here in Tulsa...

 
 

Ground pork, which I needed for the Wontons, positioned next to chicken feet.  I passed on the chicken feet; though I can think of two grandsons that would think it pretty cool if their Pappy were to cook something with chicken feet.

And soy sauce.  Talk about confusing.  Every bottle in this picture is soy sauce, and my camera didn't have a wide angle lens to get them all into the frame.  Makers and types of soy sauce that we Americans have no idea even existed.

Back at home now, kitchen set up and prepared for my first experience at trying to duplicate the best wontons I have ever eaten in my life.

 

Ground pork, eggs, salt, black pepper, sichun pepper, wonton wrappers, black vinegar, chili oil, garlic, sugar, scallions, and soy sauce.  Check.  Let's begin.

 

The batch yielded 40 wontons, at a food cost of .125c a piece.  Having worked in the restaurant business for 16 years; I know how to calculate food cost to the penny.  And I also know that any food cost below 30% is gravy train money for the restaurant.  And to have these wontons with a food cost of 12.5% is major money gravy train for Chop Sticks.

 

They were more labor intensive than I expected, but still not too bad. 

 

The pot of boiling water was ready.  Plop plop they went, and after 4 minutes were ready.  Skimmed onto a platter, drizzled with chili oil sauce, and garnished with scallions.  These sure looked good, just like the restaurant.  How did they taste?  Amazing.  Delicious.  Success!

 

One final note though.  I had over estimated 30 as to how many I could eat.  I was bloated and stopped at 24!  And bloated in pure high carb happiness (yes, these have a carb count of 5 grams each), so don't eat them unless you are on your 'binge' day, as these are not low carb!

 

Ge Bao!  (That is Bon Appetit in Chinese).

 

- Pappy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bass Fishing

Of the many things that have been said about me in the past, and of the many future things that will be said about me too; I am confident that no one describes me as an outdoors man.  I do not take offense at that, and I have respect for those men (and women) that are.

My Dad turned 82 last Thursday, and he loves fishing.  He does not hunt, hike, boat, camp, picnic, or do anything else outdoors other than fish (and he never has done any of those other things).  But, when he does get to fish, he loves it; especially on his annual trips to Canada to catch 40" Northern Pike or Walleye. 

My Mom does not do any of those items either, except the occasional picnic with the great grand kids.  It's kind of hard for me to start trying to love something new at my age that I've never done much of in my life.  I have no regrets though.

I was never in Scouts, and was not drawn to it.  I never had any friends that did anything outside either.  My entertainment and de-stressing circle was and still is: movies, books, music, concerts, fast cars, good food, history, museums, baseball, and nice hotels.  Pam says I am a "Marriott Man".  I'll take it. 

This past June, while dining on the Junkyard Dawgz (yes, a spurge day), with my good friend Kelly Wood, the subject turned to fishing.  Kelly and I became friends about 8 years ago from his days of selling us high quality furniture at Mathis.  Then, he went to work with us for awhile before our company went through a transition phase.  Kelly was a past professional fisherman, and has gone full circle to return to the professional fisherman circuit.  We talked extensively about fishing that day, and we decided to plan a fishing trip in the fall for my Dad.

Fast forward 5 months, and the weekend for our fishing trip was upon us.  Here are some pictures of our trip:

Our cabin, built in 1943 by enemy POW soldiers from Japan and Germany, whom were encamped at nearby Ft. Bragg.  The shell is original. The floor was originally dirt, the roof was originally thatch, the bathroom was originally outside as an outhouse.  As cabins go, I guess this is normal.  I don't really know, as this was only the 2nd cabin I've ever stayed in in my life.  It had one bed (for Dad), and we had to place all furniture outside in order to make room for our air mattresses to sleep on.

The bathroom was so tiny that the sink was placed in the bedroom.  Most showers are 3 x 4. This one was 2 x 1.5, so do the math.  Oh sorry, never mind Angela.  Let me do it for you.  3 x 4 = 12, and 2 x 1.5 = 3.  3 into 12 is 1/4th the normal shower size.  So, let's just say that this shower was so small that a child over age 5 would have a tough time fitting into it.  It was so small that you couldn't lift your legs to rinse them, and if you did, your butt cheeks were hanging out the backside taking the curtain with it to flood the floor.  Yep, word picture; it happened to me . . .

Plus, have you ever sat on a stool and the seat was so small that you had to lift the seat to have room to sit down on the rim?  Yep, word picture; it happened to me . . .

And oh the joys of sleeping with 3 men that get up in the night to pee.  2 x for me, 5 x for Kelly, and 2 x for Dad.  Let's see, math problem again honey, that totals 9 x that the bathroom door squeaked to wake everyone in the room.  (We had to close the door after using each time as the bathroom light was the only way to see our way as we walked sideways to the bathroom.)

  
Our view from the cabin at Greenleaf State Park looking at our fishing destination.

 

Loading up for our first trip onto the water.  Kelly's Bass Boat is a Beast.  250 hp engine, giddy up!

 

  

Here fishy-fishy.  The fish outsmarted us for this trip.  A most unfortunate reality of fishing.  And as Kelly says, 'that is why they call it fishing, and not catching.'

Heading out for Day 2 of the trip.  It was a cold morning, with north winds.  Made for difficult conditions.

We fished for about 3.5 hours on Friday afternoon, plus another 3 hours Saturday morning, and 3 more hours Saturday afternoon.  The total bass tally?  You're looking at it!  And Kelly caught it.

Good thing that Kelly brought us about 10 lbs of catfish for our 'fish fry', just in case we got skunked, which we did . . .

And oh the catfish.  It was incredibly delicious.  Kelly says it is all about how you clean and cut the meat from the catfish.  He had hooked a 50 lb 'blue', and it netted 15 lbs of usable meat.  It was some the best that I have ever tasted.

All told, we really did have a great time fishing.  So much so that we already planned a Crappie fishing trip to Okmulgee on June 6th.  Here's to hoping that our tally will be HUGE!

And a very special thanks to Kelly for helping to make my Dad's 82nd birthday gift a special time.

My Dad is 82.  Wow.  I truly am a blessed man.

Marriage

 

 

Angela; there are a lot of numbers in this blog.  Breath deeply; I know you can make it through . . .

Although the Bible does not tell us how old Eve was when she died, it does say that Adam was 930, and that Eve gave birth to 56 children.  Most theories suggest that Adam & Eve were married over 900 years, and have the longest known marriage in history.

But, let's talk about sometime a little closer to today's calendar.  Like 1772, when the modern day record of marriage was set for 91 years and 12 days by a couple in NYC.  Or, 1918, when the 2nd longest marriage on record belongs to a couple from India for 88 years and 2 days.

As of today, there are 29 couples in the world that have been married for longer than 80 years.  One of them is in the United Kingdom, and if they live to the end of December, they will be married for 88 years and 3 days, and will move into 2nd place.

Another couple in Shanghai, China have now been married for 83 years.

Did you know that 59% of the population is married, which accounts for 55.2 million marriages.

Some sad facts are that 60% of marriages end in divorce after an average of 7 years and 8 months for a first marriage.

And, that 70% of second marriages end in divorce after an average of 7 years and 3 months for a second marriage.

Only 20% of married couples make it to 35 years of marriage.

Only 5% of married couples make it to 50 years of marriage.

So . . ., why the picture of my wedding party?

Well, a few reasons.  The first being, holy cow, did we look horrible in 1977 or what?!

From left, that's me, the human zipper, with a full head of hair, sun glasses, and standing 6' with a whopping 138 lbs. of flesh.  Jiminy.  138 lbs.  (Thankfully, 36 years of 1st marriage to Pam have improved my physique to 220 lbs.).

Next to me is Steve Vives.  He still has all his hair, though fully gray.  Married for 33 years of 1st marriage to Debbie.  Lives happily in the land of cotton; enjoys 300+ days of warmth a year.

Then we have Mike Bertuzzi; arguably the best looking one of the bunch (it was either him or McDonald).  Bertuzzi was the stud at 6' and 185 lbs., making enemies of the football coaches as he spurned football and starred in track instead.  Married for 30+ years of 1st marriage to Caroline.

Next is my brother Paul Fournier.  He will tell you he is the smartest one in the group.  I will beg to differ; but that's the only time I have ever had a difference of opinion with my brother Paul.  Married for almost 25 years of 1st marriage to Nancy; and an avid Chiefs fan, which is good to be this year.

Then we have Mike McDonald; a fellow Cardinals and Thunder fan, and the only one in the group that I have had much (but not enough) continued contact with over the decades.  Married for 30+ years of 1st marriage to Beth.

Next is Bill Pollock.  Unfortunately, Bill died prematurely of a work-related animal virus, which happened shockingly fast.  Bill was a great man, and had been married for 10+ years of 1st marriage.

Mark Politte rounds out the motley crew.  Mark and I attended the same church in Broken Arrow back in the 80's, but unfortunately too, have not had much contact with since then.  Married for 30+ years of 1st marriage to Sue.

Now, here is the tricky part . . .

I was 19 years old when married to Pam, my high school sweetheart.  But, after 36 years, every single one of my wedding party is also on their 1st marriage!  7 in the wedding party, and 7 solid marriages.

Wow.  I'm really great at math, but I can't figure out what the odds would be of this happening.  1 in a billion?  1 in a trillion?  It's an amazingly high number though for going 7 of 7 after 36 years.

Special note to my Mom & Dad; they celebrated 58 years of 1st marriage last August!

So, in closing; I want the modern day record!  I want it bad!!  I have always proclaimed, stated, and believed that I am going to live to be 107.  But, in order to get the record, that 107 number has to be revised.  I have to live to 111, and Pam has to live to 110 in order for us to reach 92 years of marriage and set the new record.

I'm up for it honey.  How about you?  Instead of working till I'm 80 or 85, maybe I'll keep going to 88, so I can coast through the last 23 years of retirement. :-)

I love you Pamela Jean.

Special note to Steve Vives, Mike Bertuzzi, Mike McDonald, Paul Fournier, and Mark Politte; a most sincere and well earned Congratulations! for the length of your marriage.  Wouldn't it be the ultimate of cool if all of us could be part of the 5% that make it to 50 years of 1st marriage!

I am a blessed man.

$2

When did some prices start to go up so quickly?  I ask this simple question because I must have been sleepwalking through the past several years and not paying attention to certain prices.

Pam was in Starbucks last week for a pumpkin latte, and she said it was $5.  Are you serious!?  $5 for a fancy cup of coffee?!  Mercy, what a waste of money.  And yet the lemmings line up multiple times a day for their fix, as if it is the greatest thing since crack cocaine...

$2 per lb. for Honey Crisp Apples is expensive, but well worth it.  Man those are delicious!

$2 for a USA Today though is outrageous.  How many businesses do you know that can DOUBLE the cost of their product, and still stay in business?  No, it didn't go from $1 to $1.25, or $1.50 ~ it went from $1 to $2; crazy!

$1 for a large Tea at McDonald's?  Considering it is $2.50 at Outback, that's a good deal.  Until you consider that the food cost is .04c to brew a glass of tea.  Even at $1, that is a HUGE profit.

$1 for a Red Box movie?  Seems like a great deal compared to BlockBuster's $5 per movie, but still doesn't come close to beating the value of $8 per month to stream an unlimited supply of movies from Netflix.  The bigger problem is finding enough movies worthy of your viewing pleasure...

$3 to $5 per gallon for gasoline?  Wowzers, I have known about this one though, and paid it for years.  Which is why:

Nothing compares to $1 per gallon of gas!  Oh this is such sweet-sweet revenge.  I love pulling up to the pump in my big beast of a truck, and filling it with $1 per gallon gas. 

CNG gas that is!  Bru-ha-ha-ha!
 

Diva's

No, this is not my leg. 

It is though the leg of Joe, my son in law, and the Daddy of my two *Dueling Diva's, aka Ava and Emma. 

Joe had knee surgery to repair an injury sustained from flag football.  Joe usually runs an eye-popping 9.4 40, but as he was chasing down a 2 year old doing a blistering 8.9 40, the turf monster caught his leg, and POP!, there went the ACL.  He has been somehow been living in pain with it for 2 years?, and finally had the surgery done this week.  He's already talking smack about taking on Usain Bolt!

*Please do not steal this DD name.  I am working on a new reality show; "The Dueling Diva's".  Since TV seriously will make a show about anything; seriously, a show is on now about leftover junk in a storage building. I think it is called storage wars?  And another show is about crackheads vs. methheads. I think it is called aerial Oklahoma or burial Arkansas?  So, why shouldn't I be able to sell the show Dueling Diva's, and cast my own granddaughters as the stars?

 

 

Yesterday morning, I had the opportunity to turn a work morning into some 1 on 1 time with my Diva's.  Here is Ava in Cowboy black and orange, and Emma in Cowboy orange and black.  It's OSU game day!  Daddy Joe was already propped up in bed watching ESPN Game Day, so it was a great time to steal the Diva's away for some private time with Paps.

 

Upon arrival, Spaz makes like lighting out of the door and sets a new long jump record by leaping 34 yards into my arms, and then recreates her Pappy awarded "best bear hug and lip kiss of the year award".  Oh my gosh that felt good; I have missed these girls so much, not been able to see them for 2, maybe 3 weeks.  It's been a long time.

 

Shortly after, Ava is making the beeline for me, and I have to put Spaz down so that I can greet my Monster with big hugs and kisses too.  I'm holding Ava, squeezing her so hard she is gasping for breath (did I just hear her rib crack?), and Spaz is clinging to my leg so tightly that she just became a human tourniquet.  It is an amazing feeling to get this kind of love from my girls.  Wow, I was ecstatic.  Melted butter.  They were going to get anything they wanted this morning . . .

 

 

 

 

Our first stop was breakfast at the McDonald's of Collinsville.  (We were on our way to see a customer in the same city and deliver steaks for their new Outdoor Living Space that we had just completed construction on.)

 

The girls had just finished their first breakfast about 30 minutes ago.  But, in the words of WP "it no matter".  It has never been said that these girls don't know how to eat.  They feast like a Fournier, as I have been known to consume quantities of food so large that it embarrasses those eating with me as my dinner guests . . .

 

Fortunately for the girls, despite being big eaters, they have such a high metabolism that they burn it off and have quite the svelte body shape for their age.  I on the other hand fight constantly to keep the 10,000 calorie a day diet from making me look like a sumo wrestler.

 

The 3 of us emptied the food bins, and an hour later when we were done eating our own version of the McDonald's Big Breakfast (I had to go back and order more food for seconds, as the first round was not enough), it was time for the playground.  It felt like 7 years of my life had passed while watching them on the playground, but actually, it was only 40 minutes.  They had a blast, and are seen here in one of their many stops to the hand wiping stand using sanitizing wipes.  Let's just say that these playgrounds would not pass muster with many germophobe Mom's. 

 

 

 

Our day together ended shortly after lunch at McDonald's.  No way would I have ever picked this place for lunch after having had breakfast.  But, the girls get whatever they want, and they pleaded with me for McDonald's.  Because they wanted the pac-man thing in the Justice kids meal that they saw at breakfast.  Oh my, what incredible marketing.  The food for the most part tastes horrible, but hook those little suckers early on the playground and trinkets in their happy box, and you've got customers for life.

 

This is a picture of Emma enjoying her 20 nuggets for $5.  She didn't leave a fry.  Didn't touch the apples, and downed 2 diet Dr. Pepper's. 

 

I asked Ava what she was going to dress up for at Halloween.  She told me Dracula.  Here is her impression of his fangs.  Quite creative actually.

 

 

 

I say it frequently, but it has no less meaning.  I am a blessed man. 

 

My 5 hours with these Diva's made my day.  I love you girls!

 

- Pappy

 

 



 

WP: Our Male Model

 

Will Parker (WP), age 6. 

His first modeling job.

 

He has his momma's eyes, nose and skin color, his Daddy's hair and eyebrows,

his Pappy's ears, his Pappy's smirk, and a Kueny body (long and lean).

 

We think his head shape/size comes from the Hajducek side,

but when all the parts of his DNA were mixed together; God made one beautiful little boy.

 

He is just as sweet, tender, and kind as the images in this picture.  So merciful.  So soft spoken.

 

Behind these images though is 100% boy (other than being able to talk to girls). 

He is super shy around the little chicks that wish he would talk to them

(but he has his younger brother Romeo, I mean oMike, to do the talking for him).

 

But when it comes to baseball, football, basketball, bowling,

golf ~ he loves them all, plays them all, and is good at them all. 

 

He loves to go to Bass Pro, fish, camp, and swim for crabs on the beach!

 

I love you Will Parker, and hope you get many more modeling jobs!

~

If you wish to book WP for your next photo shoot, contact me for scheduling.

Ava's Baptism: What Do You Believe?

As an ordained Pastor, I am able to officiate weddings (4), funerals (0), and baptisms (1).

A few weeks ago, we went to my sister in law's home to borrow her pool for Ava's baptism.  Ava's church does not have a baptisty, and she did not want to go through the impersonal church baptism service usually held at the Y.  So, we decided to make it a very special event, and invited all of her family for an evening of food and to surround the pool for her baptism.

It was my pleasure, and my distinct honor to baptize my oldest granddaughter as her public profession of faith with Jesus as her Lord and Savior.  It was a special time.  I will never forget; nor do I think Ava will either.

I look forward to the honor one day of baptizing all the rest of my grandchildren.  And then, a few quick blinks of life after that; to one day marrying each one of them to mates that probably will not initially meet my standards of approval.

Though I have said it many times, it is still the truth: I truly am a blessed man.

 

 

   

Morning's

I am a morning person.

On busy days, when some would call it insomnia, I awake well before 4a, and am wide awake, not just a little bit ~ but full blown awake. 

On normal days, my days usually always start by 5 or 5:30, and all without an alarm clock.  My body clock is well-tuned, as I don't wear a watch, but always know (within 10 minutes) what time it is.  Day or night, I can guess the time.  Even when I am sleeping, I can wake up to use the bathroom, and not be more than 15 minutes off from guessing what time it is.

Mornings for me are the only peaceful time of day there is.  I frequently have my daily devotion early in the morning, and/or listen to downloaded sermons.  I download new music, write in my journal, dream about the day, my family, what's coming up for everyone.  There is not much time in my life just for me, but mornings are my time.

The only thing I can't get in the habit of doing in the mornings is exercise.  I do that in the afternoons (not nearly as often as I want to though), but wow, how I wish I could start that morning habit, as it would be so much better for my schedule.

I enjoy being on the road some mornings at 6 or 6:30 and seeing peeps in their cars; wondering, are they a worker bee, or are they the head cheese?  Last week, I was headed back from a 6a appointment that I had in Owasso, and it was right about 6:30 that next to me at the red light (my truck does not know what a green light looks like) was a woman I caught in the act of farding. 

Most unfortunately though (as if farding while driving is not unsafe enough), in her back seat were two young school age children either on their way to day-care, or some form of pre-school child care.  That sure seems early for young children to be forced into a morning person role.  I do it naturally.  I wonder about them? 

I love stopping it a QT early morning.  WOW!  What a bee hive of activity those are in the early morning hours.  Hard to find a stall for gas.  Even harder though to wedge myself to the 'zero calorie' iced tea station, as I have to split the slabs of beef that are standing 24 deep next to the QT starbucks machines filling their 10,000 calorie 64 oz. coffee jugs to start their morning. 

And forget about going down the donut aisle in one of these stores early in the morning.  These slim jim's and dainty debbie's will sooner cut off your hand that allow you to extend your arms sideways while trying to walk through that throng.  Don't worry thunder thighs, I'm not going for that freshly made triple filled jelly donut; it's all yours, I know you're working on that 2nd set of butt cheeks, so that pair in your bag ought to help you out . . .

Are you a morning person too?  My wife is a night owl, usually in bed 11p to 1a, which on most nights by midnight, my night is already half over and hers is just getting started.  Yes, we are opposites in almost everything.

So, for those of you keeping track of my blogs.  It's now a little past 3:30a on my favorite day of the week, and at my favorite time to day!

I'm going to make it a great one . . .

Thursday's

What a strange topic.

I love Thursday's.  It is my favorite day of the week.  I know for most peeps it is Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and even Wednesday, since that is the traditional hump day for peeps that work 5 days a week, but for me, typically 6 days a week; Thursday is my hump day.

I enjoy walking to the end of the driveway (unless it is too cold, and then I drive) to pick up the paper; not that I enjoy local news, as for the most part I don't.  I do enjoy reading the Thursday business section, the special "picks" section of the sports page for weekend football games.  And, I enjoy reading the Spot for all kinds of weekend events that are happening ~ that I will never go to . . .

I enjoy the thought that the week is almost over, that last Thursday was just a wink away, and now, another reason I love Thursday's is my old-found love for bowling.  Thursday afternoons are my bowling days.

What is your favorite day of the week?  Well, I'm only 22 hours from my favorite day of the week starting for me!

Grande Propina

"Give, and it shall be given unto you . . ."

I love that promise.

On Monday, my doors were blown off by a sweet older lady, who is about to lose her husband of many decades to kidney failure, and will become a widow.  They are as prepared as you can be, but it has still been a very emotional project knowing what is in store.

We had just finished the large project at her home; as she wanted us to have it completed before her husband passed, and she was so appreciative of the work, that she tipped everyone of the workers. The project had been a dream of theirs for many decades, and they procrastinated until finding us.

When we finished, they were both elated.

Then . . . she tipped me $2,000!

Wow.  Now that is what I call a Grande Propina!  I called to thank her and tell her it was too much, and that she certainly didn't have to do it.  (I did not know about the tip until I took the check out of my wallet when I got to the next appointment), and she was so sweet.  She said "I just knew inside I was supposed to do something special for you."

Thank you Jesus.  I am a blessed man!

~

And with this un-expected financial blessing, the $2,000 tip will be added to our 'cash for a new C7 Corvette savings fund'.  Woo Hoo!

LifeChurch

This picture does not show the depth of cars, but I could not find the angle that would.  I'm only showing this because of how amazed I am at the popularity of this church. It was taken at 11a on Sunday morning, which is #3 of 6 services for this location on a Sunday.

About a year ago, there was not a LifeChurch in Broken Arrow, (which is the 3rd largest city in Oklahoma).  Fast forward one year, and LifeChurch in BA has 2 services on Saturday, and a whopping 6 services on Sunday, and still needs more! 

This picture shows cars lined from one end of the strip center to the other end, which is about .2 miles away.  It is a huge parking lot, and cars are parked everywhere in it, plus behind the building, plus the grass, plus overflowing into the adjacent QT parking lot.

Having been in church seemingly all my life, I am familiar with the term "sheep shuffling", but wow, how could 10,000 sheep be shuffled just into one building?  That is a ton of sheep for other BA churches to have lost when LifeChurch opened.  I believe that LifeChurch is also attracting 1,000's of new members to church that have never been in a church before.

I love LifeChurch.  The church roots are Methodist, but you would never know that unless digging deep into the history and message on their website.  The services are ultra-modern worship, friendly surroundings, inviting atmosphere, and Pastor Craig teaches real-relevant messages in what can be described as a non-denominational delivery.

For those of you that don't know about LifeChurch, well, it is one pastor (Craig) preaching the message in Edmond, and rebroadcast 1,000's of times a week to various campus'.

The success of this concept for church is astonishing.  Last week, Pastor Craig announced a new record with over 70,000 souls in attendance on campus', and a record 900 professions of faith during the invitation. 

That deserves a resounding Hallelujah!

Pappy "300"

I promised not another bowling blog unless something exciting happened.  Well, it has . . ., at least for me!

For those of you that don't know; 12 strikes in a row in the same game is called a 300, a perfect game.

But, if someone (me) ends the first game with 4 strikes in a row, and that same someone (me) starts the next game with 8 strikes in a row, it is not called a 300.  It is simply called 12 strikes in a row.

So, for the first time in my life, I bowled 12 strikes in a row, and for my own sense of pride, I have decided to name it a Pappy 300.  :-)

Also, for the first time in my life, I rolled a 255 (my previous best was 234, and that was done 34 years ago!)

And, for the first time in my life, I rolled a 605 series, and I have never been in the 600's before.

I told you that I'd not bowled in 34 years, and joined the geezer league, and started the season with a 165 average, with a goal of having a 180 average by the end of the season.

Well, over the last 5 weeks, my average is 190.  Oh la la, I love my new ball.  Yes, I kept my Dad's ball for sentimental reasons, but bought a new Storm 7 weeks ago, and can say that I have figured out how to use it!

That's it.  You can go back to your normal Friday now.

I was just too excited not to share it with someone, even if no one cares . . . :-)

Food Trucks

On Saturday's of years gone by, one of Pam and I's favorite things to do was hop in the Vette and take off somewhere, anywhere; just getting out and away.  It was a time of respite, but we also both enjoyed the Vette just for all of its own majesty.

Alas, the Vette days are at a temporary impasse, and I never thought it possible that I would miss having one so badly.  We'd had one for 12 years, and I sold my blue C6 in order to buy my new Ford CNG truck.  It's just not the same taking BAT (Big Ass Truck) out for a day to cruise around; but until we buy the new C7 sometime next year, it's going to have to do.

About a month ago, we ventured out, and I'd had a small surprise in store for Pam: Food Trucks.

I did not tell her in advance, as I didn't think that she would approve of my culinary choice for lunch, but I've wanting to stop at them for years.  Goodness, there are over 50 in Tulsa if there is one.

On this particular Saturday, we went to the corner of 31st & Sheridan.  We pulled up, ordered the Tacos de Carbon carne asada fresco de pico e maize tortilla sans salsa e dos, en mucho verde salsa e tres.

Translation: Pam had two steak tacos without salsa, and I had three.  It's so much easier to say it in English, and we can say it with 1/2 the words.  I think they were $2.50 each, and we walked next door for our tea.  We could have had bottled Jarros, or canned Horchata, but we both prefer tea.

The tacos were delicious.  Fresh, hot; wow, they really were good.

But, no way will 3 taco's fill me, so, we drove to the other corner of the same intersection, and I had a BBQ brisket sandwich at another food truck.  It was quite pricey at $7, but it too was very good, hot, fresh, and delicious.

Yesterday, Pam and the girls went to OKC for the day to shop (there are not enough shopping places in Tulsa), and during their 13.5 hour round trip, I gave serious thought to stopping at food trucks for lunch or dinner. 

I'd been out for about 1/2 a day looking at houses to purchase for flipping, but my timing just wasn't right for when they were open, or when they didn't have lines 8 deep at the window.  While traveling down little Mexico alley from 41st & Garnett to 11th & Garnett, I counted 12 food trucks in that 3 mile stretch, and that is just what I saw while trying to keep my eyes on the road, as there could have been more.

Instead, I stopped in at Popeye's for the new waffle batter coated chicken tenders.  BIG mistake; gosh those tasted horrible. 

Wished that I had opted to stand in line at a food truck . . .

Happy 36th Anniversary!

My bride, my best friend: Pamela Jean (Hajducek) Fournier.

This photo was taken on a beautiful day last fall at my brother in law's house, as we had just returned from the gun range enjoying the sounds and power of ballistic destruction.  It is one of my favorite photo's of Pam, showing her gorgeous smile, her incredible hair, and the pink is symbolic of "she's also quite pretty on the inside".

I love my wife.  A few weeks ago we celebrated our 36th wedding anniversary.  Wow, how fortunate I was that she thought I was good enough to marry.  I truly married over my head.  Actually, most men do; but I really did.

I am truly a blessed and happy man!

I love you Pamela Jean.
 

QR Codes

Okay, not that I was ever in the stone ages, but I am officially 'of age' today.  I have created my first QR V-Card, and my first QR Stamp.

Wahoo!

So, for those of you still in the stone age asking what is QR?

It stands for Quick Response.  You can download a free barcode scanner App for all Droid and iPhones.  Once you've downloaded the App; I invite you to use my QR stamps as your first ones to scan!

Ava & 'Justice'

Ava and I had a date day last week.  It began with food (how could it not?) at the wild wing place, and it certainly was wild, packed, and the place was on a wait for lunch. The wings weren't bad, but $10 bucks for lunch was on the pricey side, especially for no more wings than were purchased.  I thought maybe these were some super special type of bird, but no, they tasted just like chicken . . .

From there, we made our way to Justice.  I'd never heard of this place, but Ava had.  And of course, as our future Donatello of fashion; why would she not have heard of it?  She is only 7, but she has been picking out her outfits for about 3 years now.  She matches colors, patterns, stripes; pretty amazing really when you study some of her ensems.

At 7, I was wearing high water jeans and a t-shirt.  The same kind of outfit I was wearing when I was 17.  Thankfully, Pam intervened and taught me some things about fashion.  Still to this day though, I can be stuck in a rut with certain styles that I will wear years past expiration. 

Not my little fashionista though, this girl knows how to rock an outfit.  And I do mean rock it.

So, we make it to Justice, and my eyes gloss over.  If you've never been, it's a store aimed at the tweeners with money, and bingo, did their marketing guru's ever hit the bulls eye.  This place too was packed.  And good grief, wow, look at these prices.  Parents didn't care though, they were ringing up sales in the multiple $100's one after the other.  My goal was to get Ava a nice back to school outfit, and keep it to a single $100.  Hard to do in this place.  Especially when you have a precious granddaughter in tow that knows how to work those eyes on her Pappy.

I am a sap.  People that know me know that.  I am a natural giver.  I give, give, give, and give some more.  I am a daughter Daddy, and by gosh, what is it about girls that just pull on my wallet a little more firmly?  I have an exceptionally hard time saying no.  And they know it.  I had to say no to the purple cowgirl boots tho, and it hurt to do so, but I said yes to everything else that she picked out. 

For $94 (thankfully because of 40% off), Ava got a dress, a matching jacket, a hair bow, a head band, matching earrings, and a charm bracelet for herself and her sister.

She was happy, thrilled actually, and that made my day.

Ava wanted to take my picture to end our date, so she snapped this with my new phone.  I thought she took a great picture, and I didn't even have to tell her how to do it.  She understands the symbols on my phone better than I do . . .

I am a blessed man.

The Joy of 6 Grandkids At Once

A little over 12 hours had passed since I'd last seen these 6 cast of characters from the day/night before, having already entertained them for 10+ hours on July 4th.  But, they had a date with Pappy, and it was my pleasure to have them all to myself for another 3.5 hours on July 5th.

For those of you new to my blog site; my 6 grandkids are as follows:

Jared Henry, age 8 (aka, The Reporter)
Ava Corinne, age 7 (aka, Monster)
Will Parker, age 6 (aka, WP)
Jack Arthur, age 5 (aka, Jack-Jack)
Emma Jo, age 5 (aka, Spaz)
Owen Michael, age 4 (aka, oMike)

So, since I am not one to break a date; especially a special Pappy date, our fun times continued . . .

We began with lunch at Wendy's.  Nuggets and cheeseburgers all around, and debates about what kind of a whale Shamu was (I said 'killer'), and oMike just wanted to know what kinds of things that Shamu killed.  He was enthralled with the thought of seals and sharks being eaten by whales.  The conversation totally disgusted Emma, as she turned up her nose, and just said something like "gross".

A bathroom incident was averted just in time.  Jared was trying to instigate the other boys to walk into the girls bathroom to spy on Ava & Emma.  I overheard it just as it appeared that Jack was preparing to take the lead.  It might have been oMike trying to take the lead too, but there was definitely some sparing between the two over who was going to go in first.  And no, WP, (little mister perfect) was sheepishly tucked in the back corner; wanting no part of this prank. 

But, when each of the boys heard quite sternly from me that NONE of them were going in there, and that if any of them did, that they would feel the painful sting of my hand upon their butt, they quickly retreated from the door.  The word picture immediately sparked something in oMike's brain as he quickly blurted out in his deep baritone voice, "yeah, and it will hurt like a wasp stinging you."  Yes oMike, it definitely would have, I'm just glad that you and Jared didn't have to feel the pain . . .

Jared had come to town with a bit of an attitude.  He didn't want to participate in the group hug, or the team meeting.  And when it was time to order, he told me he wasn't going to eat lunch.  Then he was, then he wasn't, then he was.  Can we say Mr. Fickle?  He and I went several rounds of negotiating/debating back and forth.  He tried to convince me that his Mom always ordered him the picture on the window (which was the double cheeseburger baconator, a beast of a sandwich). 

Well, I sniffed that deception out right away.  She might order the baconator, but she's also going to split it 3 ways and feed him on it for a week.  Jack is a very good eater, but Jared is a nibbler.  A nibble here and there.  Sure enough, after ordering the 'regular' single cheeseburger that he convinced me he would eat, he managed to eat exactly two bites, and I then wrapped up and placed in a to go bag.  (oMike finished it off at the bowling alley).  oMike was a hungry boy all day; I've never seen him eat so much throughout the day.

So, after lunch was finished, and the Haz Mat team* had come in to clean up the area where these 6 had sit; it was off to the bowling alley next door.  (Actually, Ava did an admirable job of cleaning up after all of her cousins).

*While I was ordering the meals (a challenging task in and of itself), each of them got forks, spoons, napkins, ketchup x 240, straws, lizards, pepper flakes, Asiago cheese, 9mm bullets, cool whip, smoke bombs, and anything else that they could round up from the condiment bar. Rumor has it that Spaz and Monster were trying to make it into the employee break room to confiscate some birthday cake ~ but that was only a rumor; unable to be confirmed by this Pappy.  Therefore, it will remain 'alleged'.

At the bowling alley, the task of shoe sizing was daunting.  Even with 4 of the 6 shoe sizes being written on the free bowling coupons; it was quite the circus scene, as 2 of the 4 written sizes were not the proper sizes.  Knots trying to be untied, purses thrown asunder, Jared's leftover French fries being spilled on the carpet, WP hoarding the green bowling balls, Jack falling over one of them, me trying to go back and forth from the counter to the carpet to try on another size, whew, just getting the shoes sorted was a 10+ minute undertaking.

If Jack-Jack was writing the blog today, this is what he would say:

Will
79 & 93, total 172

Owen
72 & 82, total 154

Jared
78 & 75, total 153

Jack
73 & 74, total 147

Ava
55 & 83, total 138

Emma
55 & 79, total 134

Pappy
200 & 189, total 389

And that would probably be the end of the blog.  But, that is not "the rest of the story", as there is so much more to tell:

Jack probably would not tell you much more about the day, as he is the most competitive child that I have ever been around.  I may not have shared one of his greatest lines ever, but even if I have, it is worth repeating.  Earlier this year, Jack came over to Nini's house, and burst through the door (he enters a room similar to oMike ~ like a bull.)  So he comes over to me, and I ask him "How is it going Jack?, good to see you!"  Without batting an eye (hard to do with those beautiful blue's), he looks up at me and says "Not too good Pappy, we've lost 2 of the last 3 games!"  He then saunters off.  So funny.

So here we are bowling, and Jack asks me after each frame, and each bowler, "who's winning Pappy?"  Well, after hearing it from all 6 a total of 30x, about midway through the 1st game, I educate them on how to read the scoreboard.  And that stopped the questions, as they were now always pointing up to it and analyzing the numbers themselves.  Smart move Pappy . . .

Jack was my buddy at the alley.  Whenever it was my turn to bowl, he would walk up to the foul line on the other alley and watch me bowl as closely as possible; almost every ball.  He is so observant, and he wanted to know all about why my ball hooks (he called it curves), and he asked me why I slam my arm like the umpire does just before a strike.  He certainly was interested in the nuances of my bowling style.  I loved it.

Jack was sad though that he came in last place among the boys.  But . . . he was overjoyed when he learned that he had at least beaten both girls.  He had beaten someone.  That is ALL that mattered. 

In this picture, WP is 'schooling' Ava on how to pick up the dreaded 5 - 7 - 10 conversion.  Ranked the 2nd most difficult conversion in all of bowling.  The 7 - 10 is ranked the most difficult, but I have always disagreed, as I have never seen the 5 - 7 - 10 converted, and I have seen the 7 - 10 converted.

WP had just bowled a strike, and you thought the roof was going to collapse at the celebration and jubilation of these 6 shouting, whooping, hollering, hugging, and high fiving each other.  Like he had just won the World Series.  Oh, for the simple things in life.  He was the new King.  Jared and WP had been treating me as a King, as they were amazed that I had 5 strikes in a row on my way to a respectable 200, which, had it not been for 2 back-to-back non-converted 5 - 7 splits, would have probably been a nice 235 or so.  Yes, it was a challenge to focus and hit my mark while bowling with 6 young'uns in the back ground making all kinds of chatter.

For Jared, it was all about ball speed.  He saw the MPH on the screen, and was always the most adamant that ball speed was more important than pin count.  He too thought that the heavier the ball, the better he would score.  He started with a 14 lb. ball which I told him was too heavy, and he couldn't even throw it down the alley dropping it behind him.  Trying to save face, he came back to me and told me the fingers didn't fit well, and that he usually rolls an 18 lb. ball that fits him better.  But that he bowls the best when he is able to use a 25 lb. ball. 

I didn't have the heart to break it to him that no ball is made heavier than 16 lbs.  But, I was able to use some reverse psychology on him, and was able to convince him that if he would roll a 6, 7, or 8 lb. ball like all the other kids were rolling, that because he was so strong, stronger than all of us, that he would really be able to smoke us on the MPH ball speed.  Well, it worked, he started throwing the 7 lb. ball, and was throwing it quite fast.  Not hardly hitting a thing, but he was hitting 16 or 17 MPH, and that is all that he cared about.  He was happy, so I was too.

After a few games of bowling, we took a popcorn break.  Remember the movie "Gone in 60 seconds"?, well this was the prequel, gone in 60 mille-seconds.  Wow, that was fast . . .

Onto the arcade, where $23 was gone in 6 seconds.  Wow, that was uber fast . . .

WP & Ava enjoyed the air hockey table.  oMike enjoyed the basketball, and skee ball.  Jack enjoyed the race cars and skee ball.  Jared didn't want to do anything that he told me he wasn't good at, so he focused his attention on the singular whack a mole, or whatever that lever pulling thing was.  Emma enjoyed being my shadow and just watching the insanity; as she did not want to play any of the games.

Seriously, the arcade did not last 20 minutes, but they had accumulated enough points to each woof down two laffy taffy's won by their accumulated point totals.  They each got to pick the color of laffy taffy, but they did not get to select individual prizes since I had no way of knowing how many points each of them had.

Without question, Emma was the most loving of the bunch.  They were all fantastic for me, but Emma knows how much I love hugs and kisses, and she was free flowing with them.  She melted my heart at the start of the 2nd bowling game when she tugged on my shirt, and motioned for me to bring my ear down to her mouth.  I did, and she said "Pappy, thank you for my new phone, I LOVE it!", so completely out of left field, but her little mind was ticking and she was so sweet and thoughtful to thank me at that precise moment.  Totally precious.

To end our time together, we made our trip to the ubiquitous local QT.  They were definitely jazzed when I told them they could each have 1 drink, and 1 food item, of anything they wanted.  Let's see, testing my short-term memory skills; WP had Funyons and sweet tea.  Spaz had a donut with sparkles and a sweet tea.  Monster had a large red/white/blue donut and Dr. Pepper.  Jack-Jack had a hot dog and cherry freezoni (he ate the bun, and gave the hot dog to oMike).  The Reporter had a cup of blueberry donut holes and a watermelon freezoni.  oMike had a sweet tea, and a Nestle candy bar, Jack's hotdog, and was working on his own bag of Funyons (I did not see the candy bar consumption, nor pay for it, and will make amends with QT on my next trip in, but my omission was brought to light by The Reporter). 

This allegation was confirmed by numerous other eye witnesses under the age of 6, but it slipped by my sight.  I was too busy answering unending compliments about how sweet it was, how cute they were, or wow, you've got your hands full, or, oh . . . he/she is so darling.  Yes, I was beaming with pride, lots of smiles myself, as I'd heard the same thing a half a dozen times already at Wendy's and the bowling alley.

So, to use the MasterCard cliché: Price of Wendy's: $19.  Price of Bowling Shoes/Arcade: $41.  Price of QT junk: $17.  Total investment for the afternoon of memories:  Priceless . . .

I am a blessed man.  Truly blessed.

4 Family 4th of July

My 4 of July started at approximately 20 minutes after midnight when I fell asleep, and then began again right at 5 hours later when I was up for the day. 

I had wanted to take off Thur/Fri/Sat, but did not finish all the most important things on my desk, and did wrap them up around 10a.

Then, it was full bore readiness for the day of festivities . . .

Get the ping pong table ready, take out the chairs, the bikes, the big wheels, the basketball goal, the scooter, and the electric 4 wheeler.  Burn a CD of special America songs to play on the patio.  Stock up the refrigerators (Pam had already done so), and start on the water guns. 

After all 6 of those were placed into action, start on the water balloons.  My, what a daunting task that was.  Took me well over an hour, and I think I got 50 completed.

Pizza made it here around Noon, and was soon vaporized . . .

Then, the water slide arrived.  We went in on the costs and split it 4 ways with Jan's family, Jackie's family, Angela's family, and Nini.

There was not a 4th of July water slide, so Pam got the Happy Birthday water slide; I guess because America was having its 237 birthday!

The afternoon evaporated for me as I spent approximately 4+ hours ON the water slide with the kids, and admit to having as great a time as they did.  My oh my though, how pooped I was.  Climbing up that thing wore the skin off of both knees all the way to my shins, as it was conservatively climbed every 2 minutes for 4+ hours.  My elbows were burned many times from going down on it face first on my stomach with a child laying on my back (Ava most of the time, as she was the bravest), and using my elbows as brakes to stop us at the bottom.

4p got here, and it was time to start the steaks . . .

Bring them up to room temp, season, and get the Hasty Bake started.  Hungry again as I write this.

All 4 families assisted in bringing various side items for the steaks, the best being Angela's new recipe for potato salad; and wow, after taking the vinegar quotient down just a tad ~ it was delicious.  I was disheartened somewhat though when there was none left for a late night snack.

After dinner, the kids went right back to the water slide (not much of the other Nini's house toys saw much action that day), as it was contained to 95% water slide action; the adults did some clean up, and got ready for fireworks.

Steven was finishing up his homemade bombs.  He blew up a paint can, two 5 gallon buckets, and a flower pot; and that is just what I remember.  In the immortal words of Angela "so Phil Dumbfee".

The kids did a few hours of 'daytime' fireworks while we waited for nightfall.  And finally, it was dark, and the show began.  All the families had brought their own fireworks, and for about 90 minutes put on a really enjoyable show.

The finale though was provided by our new next door neighbor.  Most of his fireworks were at the $100 a pop or better level, as I remember 5 aerials that were commercial grade.  At $100 a pop, it made for a fantastic neighborhood show.  This is one type that he shot off:
http://fireworkssupermarket.com/Product/500_Gram/RogueWave

11p came, and we were all hugging and kissing each other bye.  I took a shower, and collapsed into bed; barely able to walk.

I love my family.  I love memories like this.

I am a blessed man.

Casanova/Romeo

 

"Owen!  Owen!  I'm over here Owen!  Do you see me?  How are you doing?"  Sweet words yelled by Ryan, an absolutely darling (and very pretty) little 3 year old girl, that knows Owen from their tumbling class.  I was not able to get her picture, because just as soon as Owen had dissed her, she made her way back to her VERY pregnant Momma hoping for some positive strokes of affirmation.

 

Owen did not want Ryan's attention, not a chance, as he was making moves on her older sister Ashley shown above (who is 6), as she too was also giving Owen all kinds of attention.  The two of them were carrying on a conversation like they had been fast friends for years. 

 

This little boy's skills of persuasion will make you blush . . ., and makes the girls swoon . . ., amazing.  They stick to him like flypaper. 



"Hey Mister, can I play with your little boy?"  Why sure sweetheart, what is your name?  My name is Jacki, without the E.  Well, it is very nice to meet you Jacki, without the E, you are a pretty little girl, and your hair is awesome; how old are you?  I'm 6 but because my birthday is Sept. 29th, my Momma tells me that I am 6 going on 7.  Ok thanks, that is good to know; well, this is Owen, and he is 3, going on 30, and yes, he will be able to tell you all about the fish in this tank.  (editor's note: Jacki, without the E, was standing on a rock ledge taller than Owen's; they are actually the same height).

Owen my Owen, where forth are thou going today? 

No wonder Bass Pro is his favorite haunt in all the world; as no matter the day or time, he knows that chicks will be headed his way; and that they will be pretty little chicks too.  Yes, it is a cliché, but it truly does never cease to amaze me.

I love you oMike, see you again soon.  - Pappy

Ford Fetus

I had an appointment to take my new truck in Tuesday for minor warranty repairs, and to pick up a loaner truck like the last time.  I have an F250, and he is a beast, and the last loaner was a dually diesel, so I was quite comfortable with the switch (loved the dually actually).

However, they did not have a loaner truck available, so they sent me next door for a loaner car, which is an oxymoron, as this is not a car, it is the Ford Fetus, the smallest thing on 4 wheels.  Look at the picture and tell me if you don't agree.  For this picture, I even had the zoom setting at 10x normal size.

This car is so small there is no room for door locks.  So small that even Spaz would look big in it.  I had to perform surgery on my left leg so that I could fold it up while trying to extricate myself each time I opened the mail chute, which they call a door; but it would not fit a good size honey kissed ham. 

This parishilton sized purse for wolfie does not have a car charger connection; so my phone was off in this 2 piece chicken mcnugget container as I was screaming for help to get out.

What a joke.  I've not been a skinny guy for 35 years (since high school), but seeing me wedge the bulk of my 222 lbs., standing 6'2" with my cowboy boots on, and with my cowboy hat; it was quite the sight.

Well, at least the Ford Fetus was blue . . .

Bowling w/Paps

 

Recently (I can't remember the exact date), I treated this gang of 4 to an afternoon with Pappy (or Paps) as Ava is fond of saying.  We started the day at Panda Express for lunch, which, I do not think an ounce of food was left on their plates ~ they each love the fast Chinese.

 

We then went bowling.  The top picture shows them all waiting their turn.  WP on the edge of the chair with his leg crossed in the business man's leg cross.  Just exactly like I do; he is so precious.  I got so used to doing it when wearing a suit, that now it is the only way I ever cross my legs.

 

Ava was my little organizer.  She kept things 'rolling', and made sure that each one of us stayed in the proper bowling order.  She did a great job of it.  And you can see my little Spaz right there dressed in her imitation of Nini.  Exactly the same kind of sweaters than Nini wears year round.  Emma was so sweet on me that day; even with the sweater she was cold, but I was her heater.  She would roll her turn, then snuggle up in my lap for more warmth.  I loved it.

 

The scores:  Ava #1 both games; barely.  Caveman #2 both games.  WP #3, and Spaz #4.  Though we had gutter guards up, cave man did not hit the gutter guards one time, and was the one the most determined NOT to need Pappy's help.  Spaz though had the slowest ball.  It clocked in at a blistering 1.2 mph, and stopped on the alley once before hitting the pins.  I didn't know that was possible, but we had to have an attendant walk down the alley to retrieve her stopped ball.  After that episode, we each took turns coaching her to throw it between her legs as hard as possible; which I think boosted her speed to 1.8 mph on the foul line radar gun, but it was enough to make it to the pins . . .

 

The afternoon ended with them each inhaling multiple donuts and drinks at QT.  A perfect ending to a day with Paps.

 

I am so blessed.